Ready for Some Woo? Let’s Talk About Oracle Cards!

For twelve years, I was an oracle card monogamist.

I had one, faithful deck of cards and I consulted it– only it— with devotion and loyalty. I was guaranteed to pull cards from this deck every solstice and equinox (at a minimum), and the mere thought of turning my back on this deck? Well, it wasn’t ever a thought, because it was simply unthinkable.

Choosing this deck had been a long, drawn-out, careful, and even painstaking process.

I knew going into this selection that each deck carried different energy, and I wanted to ensure that my deck and I were fully compatible before committing. (Like marriage, right? Um… right, guys? Anyone?)

Image from www.tarotteachings.com

There had been my first experience with oracle cards (thank you, Auntie Cher!), in which I was enchanted and fascinated by the accuracy of my cards spreads but also terrified of pulling cards like Death. Please don’t pull the Death card. Please don’t pull the Death card. At the time, I wasn’t experienced enough to know that oracle cards are more symbolic than literal, or that pulling ‘bad’ cards don’t necessarily mean that ‘bad’ things will happen. (‘Bad’ like Death.)

Then there was that time when I inherited the traditional Rider Tarot Deck from a person who shall remain unnamed. It was long before I understood that cards could (and should) be cleared of ‘old’ energies, and mere minutes after putting it on my bookshelf to use at a later date, I felt an overwhelming need to hurtle that deck into the trash. (For the record: I did! Recycling, be damned! Not only was this deck tossed violently into the garbage can, but then I needed to take that trash out of the house immediately afterward. And even then, my soul wasn’t settled until the garbage collectors came and took that nasty-ass-energy-infused deck away forever. I’ve never been drawn to traditional decks since… but I’m a pretty avid recycler now, so at least there’s that.)

Anyway.

Image from www.lucycavendish.com

When I was looking for my forever deck of oracle cards, I knew that I wanted cards with a positive focus (no Death cards, please), and I also wanted the illustrations to both resonate with me and be pleasing to me (no creepy Magician drawings, please). I spent hours and hours and hours poring over the Amazon website, clicking on images and narrowing down my choices from hundreds to a handful of decks. Eventually, being a young, 20-something feminist, I settled on the Oracle Tarot deck by Lucy Cavendish, clicked the ‘Add to Cart’ button, and the rest is history.

These cards have served me well.

I remember pulling the New Love Energy card less than a week before I met Marty. Flipping that card over, I drew my breath in sharply and felt my whole body flutter with excitement! I had never even seen that card before it showed up in that fateful spread, and I’ve never drawn it again since. #Fact

During my Masters Degree, when my mind and my heart were deeply misaligned, I recall asking for guidance and drawing a single card out of my deck: Lay Your Burden Down. Seeing that card, I cried and cried and cried. I desperately wanted to step away from my program, but at the time, I didn’t believe I could. In that case, I turned my back on this intuitive guidance and plowed ahead to finish my program (garnering myself a case of full-blown depression along with the fancy new initials after my name. Lesson learned.)

Given how devoted I was to my ‘One Deck’ of oracle cards, and given how faithfully it had served me on countless occasions over the past dozen years, I was startled when a new deck of cards caught my eye– easily and instantaneously.

Image from http://www.colourcult.com.au

As soon as I saw the Connected & Free deck by Lauren Aletta of Inner Hue, I knew I had to have it. I wasn’t looking for a new deck (or even thinking about looking for a new deck!), but these oracle cards won me over instantly. I could feel the sacred energy of them flowing out from my computer screen and infusing the space around me. Every illustration I saw in the preview photos gave me goosebumps or made me swell with high-frequency emotions. They were so powerful, and even though buying them would mean I was no longer a one-deck woman, the decision to ‘Add to Cart’ was a soulful no-brainer. So I did it. And I have no regrets!

Image from www.innerhue.com

As you know, I am just back from an extended holiday, so many months went by in between me buying the Connected & Free oracle cards and actually getting to see and use them in person.

It was worth the wait!

Obviously, I have grown and changed a lot in twelve years, so what I love about this new deck is how the insights and the illustrations are more in line with the woman I am now (versus the woman I was when I ordered my original deck). Specifically, even though the drawings in Connected & Free are sometimes darker and deeper than the ones in the Oracle Tarot deck– and even though the guidance in the accompanying book isn’t all roses and rainbows– I feel more confident in my own energy and in my abilities to ‘handle’ whatever themes are coming up for me now. I still wouldn’t be 100% receptive to pulling a Death card with a picture of a Grim Reaper on it, but thankfully, the Connected & Free cards don’t go that dark, either. 😉

The other thing I LOVE about the Connected & Free deck is that Lauren deliberately created her cards to promote using your own intuition, rather than rushing to the guidebook to get the ‘real’ or ‘correct’ interpretation of the chosen cards. With the Oracle Tarot, it took me a loooooooong time to finally feel comfortable weaning myself off the guidebook and ascertaining the meanings of my card spreads intuitively. But with the Connected & Free deck, I made a point to journal out my own impressions before I even considered looking up my cards in the guidebook (and guess what? It really works!)

I find the illustrations in Connected & Free easier to ‘decipher’ (or at least the symbolism seems to jump out at me much more easily). Also, because there are no suits or numbers to keep track of with these oracle cards, the meanings of each card are more obvious and accessible. (In contrast, does anyone know what the 6 of Swords card represents off the top of their head? Exactly.)

If you are interested in seeing more of the Connected & Free card images and even testing out the cards for free online, you can do so at the “Instant Intuition” page on Lauren’s website. Do eet!

Image from www.colourcult.com.au

I could go on (and on and on) about oracle cards: why I love them, how I use them, and how they benefit me on a daily, weekly, or seasonal basis.

However, I’ll stop here while I’m still ahead. (At least for now.)

Do you use oracle cards?

What is your favorite deck (or decks?)

Are you an oracle monogamist like I was, or do you flit from deck to deck with ease and abandon?

Do you have any questions about oracle cards that you’d like me to answer?

5 Comments

I have… well, I’m not sure… let’s just say several decks of Tarot/oracle cards. I was unpacking them recently, trying to figure out which decks to keep and which to let go. For a long time my go-to deck was The Mythic Tarot, based on Greek mythology. The storyline, using various myths, made it easy for me to learn the meanings and the book explained the symbolism so well that even if I couldn’t remember the meanings without consulting the book, I was able to intuitively grasp the possibilities through the images/artwork on the cards. I have an infinity for Greek mythology so that is also a factor. The Greek myths are the first stories I remember (which is odd because there are no Greeks in my family pantheon).

I bought the Osho Zen Tarot not long ago, and have been connecting with the cards in that deck really well. I’ve been eyeing the Connected & Free deck. The images are wonderful, and the fox card you displayed is one that keeps coming back to me, maybe because I’ve been dreaming of Fox lately. Or maybe the dreams are from the card.

The Osho Zen deck sounds wonderful as well (at least based on the card pulls you’ve documented on your site!) I tried a number of Doreen Virtue decks using free iPad 7-day trials, and while the spreads were always ‘accurate’, I wasn’t always enchanted by the illustrations, which is a big deal for me. I love to be pulled in by the whole package, so to speak: message, artwork, and guidebook explanation. FUSSY. 😉

Now that I have dipped my toes in the ‘more than one deck’ waters, I’ll probably become a raging oracle card polygamist. I’m also drawn to The Wild Unknown Tarot deck, a sacred geometry deck I saw somewhere online, and a spirit/totem animal deck that is in the works from The Fifth Element Life. I’m officially blaming Instagram for my lack of one deck faithfulness now. 😉

Angela

May 11, 2015

I love the Oracle Tarot! It was my first tarot deck, and I got teased about my “not playing with a full deck”.
I love the Faeries Oracle, but I have barely used my cards for the last few years – even though I still collect tarot decks.

Seriously?! What are the odds that we would both start out with the same deck? (Also: what are the odds that I had never heard that ‘not playing with a full deck’ thing? So sheltered!)

I find that the more I use my decks, the more accurate and uncanny they feel. However, I’ve also gone long, long stretches with nary a card pull. Coming back to the decks always feels DELICIOUS! (Maybe you’ll find the same thing?) Lately, I’ve been doing daily readings from the Connected and Free oracle, and incredibly, I keep drawing the same 3-5 cards repeatedly, no matter how much I shuffle. YES!

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Hey there! I’m Dana

Welcome!

I’m here to teach you how to read energy and how to become fluent in your own intuition. (Actually, it’s more accurate to say that my purpose is to remind you how to be intuitive, because you already are! Yes, you.) Currently, I am creating new offerings and ways to connect with me, including an intimate video series and a comprehensive intuitive immersion course. The best ways to stay in the loop for now are by following me on Instagram and by signing up for my newsletter here. Thank you for being here, and welcome to my online abode! xx

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